Freedom Is Not Free, but the parade is (mostly)!

The 2010 Armed Forces Torchlight Parade takes to the streets of downtown Spokane at 7:45 p.m. Saturday, May 15. Thousands of spectators line the streets for this annual event, which is in its 72nd year and has more than 200 entries, including military servicepeople from all branches, parade royalty, classic cars and a variety of other floats and parade balloons. The theme for this year's event, organized by the Spokane Lilac Festival Association, is "Freedom Is Not Free." While seating along most of the parade route is available on a first-come, first-serve basis, there is bleacher seating available along Washington Street, between Main Avenue and Spokane Falls Boulevard. Bleacher seating costs $15 per person, and those seats can be purchased by calling the Lilac Festival office at 509-535-4554. Tickets also will be available at the festival trailer, along Washington, starting at 4 p.m. on the day of the parade. For the parade route and more information, go to www.spokanelilacfestival.org.

Interplayers is going to sock it to you.

Interplayers Professional Theatre starts a three-week run of its play "Psychopathia Sexualis" with a 7:30 p.m. performance Thursday, May 13, at the Interplayers Theatre, at 174 S. Howard. The comedy tells the story of a soon-to-be-married man who can't perform in bed without a certain pair of socks, them about the psychologist who steals the socks from him, and the hilarity that ensues with attempts to retrieve them. The play also will be put on at 8 p.m. Friday, May 14, and Saturday, May 15, followed by a 2 p.m. matinee Sunday, May 16. The following two weeks, the play will be performed Wednesday through Saturday nights, with Saturday matinees as well. Tickets range in price from $14 to $21 for adults, $12 to $19 for seniors. For tickets, call Interplayers at 509-455-PLAY or go through Tickets West at www.ticketswest.com or 800-325-SEAT.

Good luck keeping up with the Brownses.

Two years after a sold-out Spokane show, The Five Browns return for a concert with the Spokane Symphony at 8 p.m. Friday, May 14. The five young siblings-three women and two men, all virtuoso concert pianists-put their 50 fingers to work to the delight of audiences throughout the U.S. They released their first album in 2005, and it went to the top of the Billboard charts. Now, they are well on their way to realizing their dream of introducing classical music to a broader audience-and their own generation. Tickets to the Spokane concert range in price from $22 to $46, with $12 tickets available for students. For tickets, call the Martin Woldson Theater at 509-624-1200 or go through Tickets West at
www.ticketswest.com or 800-325-SEAT.

You May laugh at Ralphie.

Rising comedian Ralphie May brings his standup routine to the Bing Crosby Theatre, at 901 W. Sprague, for a one-night-only show, at 7:30 p.m. Sunday, May 16. May first gained fame on the television show "Last Comic Standing" and since has recorded four albums, the most recent being, "Ralphie May: Austin-tatious." He was named to Variety's "10 Comics To Watch" list in 2008 and recently wrapped up work on a movie titled "The Best and Brightest," starring himself, Neil Patrick Harris and Amy Sedaris. That movie is scheduled to be released later this year. Tickets to the Spokane show are $29.50 and are available through Tickets West at
www.ticketswest.com or 800-325-SEAT.

Ignite's season ends in tragedy.

Ignite! Community Theatre ends its fifth season of its Booklight Reader's Theatre in tragic fashion when it stages the William Shakespeare classic "MacBeth." The reader's theater version of the play will be performed at 7 p.m. Friday, May 14, in the teleconference room at Gonzaga University's Foley Library, and at 2 p.m. Sunday, May 16, at the Blue Door Theatre, at 815 W. Garland. Admission is free, but donations are accepted. For more information, go to www.ignitetheatre.org.

Tyrell plays well for others.

Jazz great and crooner Steve Tyrell will cruise into the Northern Quest Resort Casino's Pend Oreille Pavilion for a show at 8:30 p.m. Saturday, May 15. The Grammy Award-winning artist has been playing to the delight of live audiences and movie audiences alike for four decades now. His music appears on the soundtracks of movies such as "Father Of The Bride," "The Brady Bunch Movie," and "Mystic Pizza." Tickets to the Tyrell concert are $40 and are available through Northern Quest at 877-871-6772 or through Tickets West at
www.ticketswest.com or 800-325-SEAT.

All the best will play Musicfest.

Musicfest Northwest continues this week at the Gonzaga University campus. The 65-year-old annual event attracts more than 1,000 entries in nine categories - "ballet, brass, flute, guitar, organ, piano, reeds, strings and voice - "with all adjudicated performances free and open to the public. At 7:30 p.m. on tonight, May 12, the Young Artist Concert is planned at the Bing Crosby Theater, at 901 W. Sprague. The event concludes with a Festival Highlights Concert at 7:30 p.m. Friday, May 14, also at the Bing. For that evening's show, judges choose their favorite performers from each division to perform. For more information, go to www.musicfestnorthwest.org.

The Sweet Sounds of Music

The Spokane Youth Symphony presents "Musical Milestones" Featuring the Concerto Competition Winners, this Sunday, May 23, 4:00pm at the Martin Woldson Theater at The Fox. The Spokane Youth Symphony began in 1949 as a "teaching orchestra" environment for young musicians in the Spokane area. Designed to provide the students with large group performance opportunities, as well as chamber music experience, the youth orchestra program allows students to enhance their musical skills by interacting with other musicians of varying abilities and performing music they find challenging yet attainable. There are 4 orchestras which make up the Spokane Youth Symphony: Spokane Youth Orchestra, Junior Symphonic Orchestra, Junior Orchestra, and Intermediate String Orchestra. Tickets are available at the box office at 509 624-1200 or at Ticketswest at 1-800-325-SEAT. For more information, visit www.spokaneyouthsymphony.com.

The Irish are Coming!

The Lord Mayor of Limerick, his Worship Kevin Kiely, is leading a delegation for an official visit to Spokane on May 14 - 17 to celebrate the 20th Anniversary of the Spokane-Limerick Sister City relationship. Mayor Verner is honoring him at a reception on Friday May 14 from 4-6 in the Chase Gallery in Spokane City Hall. He has been named an Honorary Grand Marshall in the Lilac Festival Armed Forces Torchlight Parade and will be riding in the Parade on Saturday night joined by Kerry Lynch, President of the Limerick Society and former Mayor Jack Geraghty. Lord Mayor Kiely is the 813 Mayor of Limerick which became a city on October 3, 1691, almost 200 years before Spokane. This is the 8th official visit to Spokane of a Mayor of Limerick City.

BeGin your weekend the right way.

The Northwest Museum of Arts and Culture's monthly BeGin! party is from 6-8 p.m. Friday, May 14, at the museum, located at 2316 W. First in Browne's Addition. The Booze Fighters will be performing, and a new BeGin signature drink will be available at the no-host bar. There will be free admission to the museum and the opportunity to tour the MAC's many new exhibits. For more information, go to www.northwestmuseum.org.

This event is bound to get some good ink.

The third annual Lilac City Tattoo Expo will take place Friday, May 14, through Sunday, May 16, at the Spokane Convention Center. The Showdevils will headline a full weekend of entertainment, and the show will feature live tattooing and piercing from some of the nation's best tattoo artists, all of whom have been filtered by an approval committee and all of whom are certified in blood-born pathogen training. There will be live entertainment and the headliner is the Enigma "Puzzle Guy." There will be a live auction of donated paintings to benefit the boys and girls clubs of Moses Lake and Spokane. This is your chance to get tattooed or pierced by some of the nations best artists, as well as an opportunity to purchase an original piece of art while supporting a program that provides for our youth. Admission is $15 per day or $25 for the weekend. Tickets can be purchased at the door or in advance through Tickets West at www.ticketswest.com or 800-325-SEAT.

As I Lay Dying - Grammy-nominated metalcore band As I Lay Dying breaks the silence with "The Powerless Rise," the crew's first albums since 2007's "An Ocean Between Us." Hear the new goods live at 7 p.m. on Monday, May 17, at The Knitting Factory Concert House, 919 W. Sprague Ave. Cost: $18.50 in advance, $22 day of show.

Mark Ward CD Release - Spokane singer-songwriter favorite Mark Ward sheds some light on his relationship to the sun on brand new album, "Through the Dark." Check out Ward's CD release show on Friday, May 14, at The Seaside, formerly The Blvd., 230 W. Riverside Ave. Also on the bill is Kevin Long and Tyler Fortier. Cost: $7.

Th' Mole - Vocalist, electronic composer and leader in the no-budget record label movement, California rapper Th' Mole is a truly underground artist. With nearly 30 albums to his credit, in half as many years, Th' Mole has taken a brief hiatus to produce a children's music project where he appears under the moniker Captain Daydream. Th' Mole surfaces for a night of hip-hop action at 9 p.m. on Friday, May 14, with locals Gun of the Sun, Jaeda, Stone Tobey and Fat Arm at Sunset Junction, 1801 W. Sunset Blvd. Cost: $5.

The Awkward Years - Platform Booking introduced Spokane to The Awkward Years last year on the Caterina patio. Now, after lead singer Will Brasch took some time off for his new baby boy, The Awkward Years are back in effect. Catch Spokane's on-the-rise indie-pop-experimental talent with The Awkward Years, Space Opera 77 and The Shondas at 9 p.m. on Saturday, May 15, at Sunset Junction, 1801 W. Sunset Blvd. Cost: $5.

Auntie's has Extraordinary Opportunities.

Author Darby Roach will present his book, "Your Three-Second Window: Changing Everyday Moments Into Extraordinary Opportunities For Success," at 12:30 p.m. Sunday, May 16 at Auntie's Bookstore, at 402 W. Main. Roach is the president of Orbit Direct Creative Marketing in Seattle and will available for a question-and-answer period and a book signing. The event is free and open to the public.

Help the hungry while satisfying your own appetite.

Second Harvest Food Bank's 16th Annual Taking a Bite Out Of Hunger event will be from 5:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. Wednesday, May 19, at the Spokane Arena. The event features a food and beverage tasting and an auction and raises money for a 39-year-old organization that leads a group of more than 300 food banks and meal centers. For more information, go to www.2-harvest.org.

There's a new place in town.

Nyne Bar and Bistro is about to open at 232 West Sprague in the old Sylvan Furniture warehouse building between Browne and Bernard. It's going to be a family friendly restaurant until 9 pm; then it will be an impressive night spot with live music as well as a one of a kind, state of the art, juke box. They also plan to make the spacious facility available for group events. We'll have more on the grand opening soon.

Cheers to these outstanding restaurants.

The Washington Restaurant Association Spokane Chapter recently awarded the following outstanding honors: Full Service Restaurant of the Year: Anthony's at Spokane Falls. Casual Dining Restaurant of the Year: Satellite Diner, and Quick Service Restaurant of the Year: High Nooner. The honors go to those industry leaders who exemplify service to customers, food quality, cleanliness and overall appearance, integrity in dealing with suppliers, participation in the WRA and community involvement.

NAME THAT FLICK.

"You know, even though I had to wear that stupid back brace and you were kind of fat, we were still totally cutting edge."

Name the movie that line appeared in to win a $10 gift certificate to the Ben & Jerry's Scoop Shop at RiverPark Square! Send your best guess and your phone number to info@entertainmentspokane.com.
The winner will be selected at random from correct entries and will be announced in next week's e-newsletter. The deadline for entries is noon on Friday, May 14.

Last Week's Winner: Michele Claflin is singin'!

Last week's movie quote was, "Meet the greatest actor in the world! I'd rather kiss a tarantula." Claflin correctly guessed that it was from the 1952 classic "Singin' In The Rain" and won a $20 gift certificate to the Cathay Inn!Send your entertainment news to info@entertainmentspokane.com

Entertainment Spokane! is an Ed Clark production.

For over 35 years Ed Clark has served the needs of Spokane area hospitality, restaurants and entertainment businesses in reaching greater audiences. Since 2002, Ed has delivered the Spokane “How’s Business?” e-mail newsletter that reaches nearly 6000 readers weekly.